Death penalty review panel members prosecuted more than 1,900 cases since 2012, records show

By:
Samantha Manning

Updated: Oct 16, 2017 - 6:19 PM

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Death penalty review panel members prosecuted more than 1,900 cases since 2012, records show

ORLANDO, Fla. - Since State Attorney Aramis Ayala announced the formation of a panel to review whether the death penalty should be sought in a case, Channel 9 has been pouring through records for the seven members.

All are assistant state attorneys, six of them permanent members, who have prosecuted a wide variety of cases, including some seeking the death penalty.

For the death penalty to be sought in a case, the panel must be unanimous, which Sheaffer said would be a difficult thing to do.

“It’s hard to get seven ordinary citizens to agree on anything,” he said. “It may be darned impossible to get seven lawyers to agree on anything.”

While Ayala hopes the panel will allow her office to continue prosecuting cases where the death penalty could be sought, Scott has not said if its existence would keep him from removing cases from her office.

“We will continue to review the details that come out of the state attorney’s office, but the governor must be convinced that the death penalty will be sought as outlined in Florida law, when appropriate,” Scott’s office said in a media statement. “The governor will always stand with crime victims and their families.”

The SAO says the death penalty review panel has met once so far since SA Ayala put it together. They discussed protocols/procedures @WFTV